Lasers are considered to be the light sources of the future for producing special effects. They are currently used for producing high intensity white light where laser beams are focused onto a light conversion element, such as a phosphor. Such light sources are interesting in applications such as stage lighting, projection and automotive front lighting systems.
There are many applications in which it is desirable to produce a light source where the beam shape can be adjusted. One example is automotive headlights, for example where different beam directions and shapes are required for main beam lighting and for dipped beam lighting. Directional control may also be used to provide beam steering when a driver is making a turn.
Laser based automotive lighting systems have been proposed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,256,941 discloses a system in which a laser output can be optically switched to different phosphors, each forming part of a system which can give a different directional output.